Monday, January 07, 2013

Just Enjoy the Moment

Well, Christmas and New Year's have come and gone, so we can all heave a big sigh of relief. We started out with our normal tradition of getting a tree together -- likely the last Christmas that we will all be here to do it, so we waited for the Bratty Girl and her Young Man to get home. Jill decorated the house in her typically festive spirit, but before we could do Christmas (on the 23rd, mind you, because I had to work on Christmas Day -- or so I thought....), we had Jill's birthday. We didn't do anything special really, just dinner at Boston Market, then she and Michael headed to Christmas at the Zoo. They do love the zoo.

Well, the 23rd came quickly enough, and I figured they'd be chomping at the bit to open presents, as soon as Jim and I got back from church. But NOOOOO.......first Thomas informs me that he still has to wrap things. Now, Thomas' and Seth's version of wrapping is this (and I sure wish I had the picture of Jill's birthday present, wrapped by The Heir and The Spare): Plunk gift down on wrapping paper. Cut wrapping paper bigger than the present. Crunch the paper up with no real regard to neatness or hospital corners. Engulf entire parcel with Priority Mail packing tape, rendering it virtually impossible to get open. Yeah, it's man-wrapping. But I digress.

Thomas wrapped whatever it was that he needed to wrap, then Jill disappeared. Now, I was on call, so I had to do all of this in between phone calls on a VERY busy day, so the mother was not amused by the brat's absence. Whilst she was gone, quiet Michael, who speaks sparingly, informs the boys that while they were at the zoo, someone got engaged "and yeah, Jill was not too happy after that." I'll bet not.........

And then Jill walked in, stuffed my stocking full of Almond Joy and other assorted coconut filled candy, and we were off to the unwrapping races. Thanks to Dave Ramsey, I was able to have a credit-cardless holiday and still have a crazy stack 'o loot under the tree, and everyone was quite happy in the end:

It even wore the dog out. And may I add, that couch is ugly as sin, but Thomas says I can never get rid of it, because Boo is certain that it's his. And I'm sure that Thomas is right about that. But I digress.

But the highlight of the day was the last present, presented to Jill by Michael:

Yep. A whole lotta bling going on. And one VERY happy girl. And mother too, I might add. There were some tears, a kiss and a hug, and then the bratty one runs up to me, hugs me, then steps back, panic stricken, and says "what do I do now?" The poor dear looked terrified.

Words that Inspire Me

"You gain strength, courage and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You are able to say to yourself, 'I have lived through this horror. I can take the next thing that comes along.' You must do the thing you think you cannot do." ~Eleanor Roosevelt

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“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.” == Marianne Williamson

Don't be afraid of death, Winnie. Be afraid of the unlived life. - Angus Tuck, in Tuck Everlasting

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“For beautiful eyes, look for the good in others; for beautiful lips, speak only words of kindness; and for poise, walk with the knowledge that you are never alone.” - Audrey Hepburn

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Life should NOT be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in an attractive and well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways, chocolate in one hand, wine in the other, body thoroughly used up, totally worn out and screaming Wow! What a ride!

If you cannot get rid of the family skeleton, you may as well make it dance. - George Bernard Shaw

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“Few will have the greatness to bend history itself; but each of us can work to change a small portion of events, and in the total of all those acts will be written the history of this generation.” - Robert Kennedy